Full steam ahead for BSRIA's 60 year celebrationsJuly 2016

Julia Evans OBE, Chief Executive, BSRIABSRIA will be treating its staff to a steam train trip with Steam Dreams from Bracknell to Bath on Friday 15th July in celebration of BSRIA’s 60 years of trading last year.

The train – BSRIA Diamond Express – will pick up staff from Bracknell at 10:40 hrs and make its way to Bath, arriving at 13.10 hrs.

Staff will then have five hours exploring the exciting, historic city of Bath before boarding the train home. A three course dinner will be served before arriving back in Bracknell at 20:45 hrs.

Julia Evans, Chief Executive, BSRIA, said: “This is a momentous moment for BSRIA which should be marked by such a wonderful day out for staff. Any business is only as strong as its employees. Bath is a wonderful city and the day will give colleagues the chance to bond with others from across the departments within BSRIA. And we have many train enthusiasts among us who will especially enjoy the train!

To coincide with BSRIA’s 60th anniversary, BSRIA launched its INSPIRE commemorative publication which looked at 120 engineers of the past and present to highlight the great impact they’ve had on the industry and the world. Isambard Kingdom Brunel came out top in BSRIA’s chance to ‘vote for your favourite and most influential engineer’ competition.

It is fitting that Brunel won while staff are transported on the tracks of his inspired vision. Brunel set the standard for a well-built railway including expensive construction techniques and new bridges and viaducts, and the two-mile-long Box Tunnel between Chippenham and Bath.

Engineering and scientific experimentation is an invaluable skill, alongside the robust nature of an investigative style which tolerates and builds on both success and failure. Perseverance is failing 19 times and succeeding the 20th. Brunel is a splendid example of this attitude.”

BSRIA also launched its INSPIRE project in 2016 to raise the question of why are STEM subjects important? What does engineering mean for you? Why does technology matter? There is one answer to those three questions which is quite simply ‘everything’. History has shown that those who pursue science arguably make the biggest impact to the world; incredible minds provide us with incredible ideas we once might have thought of as unbelievable but are now ingrained in our society. BSRIA is working with local schools, national and local politicians and the media to promote STEM and change its perceptions.

Julia added: “Clearly the day will marry the old and the new worlds of cutting-edge engineering.”

Steam Dreams & The Cathedrals Express

Steam Dreams, which operates The Cathedrals Express, was the brainchild of steam train enthusiast Marcus Robertson. The first Cathedrals Express left London for Canterbury in 2000 and was an immediate success. The company now offers a number of UK multi-day tours and is also planning a series of overseas tours in the future.